Stacked Weekend on Deck for Utah Track & Field

SALT LAKE CITY – A very busy and stacked weekend lies ahead for the Utah track & field team as the team will be split up between four different meets throughout the weekend starting this Thursday – Sunday.
 
UVU COLLEGIATE INVITATIONAL
DATE: March 31 – April 1
HOST: Utah Valley
LOCATION: Hal Wing Track & Field
MEET SCHEDULE: https://bit.ly/3uFAHrn
LIVE RESULTS: https://bit.ly/3qPirur
PARTICIPANTS: BYU, Dixie State, Idaho State, Utah, Utah State, Utah Valley, Weber State, Westminster College
 
WEST COAST RELAYS
DATE: April 1
HOST: Fresno State
LOCATION: Veteran's Memorial Coliseum
MEET SCHEDULE: https://bit.ly/3JYk3tu
LIVE RESULTS: https://bit.ly/3wNagTp
LIVE STREAM ($): https://bit.ly/3Dn2gto
PARTICIPANTS: Cal Baptist, Cal Poly, Colorado State, CSU Bakersfield, Fresno Pacific, Fresno State, Long Beach State, Loyola Marymount, San José State, Seattle Pacific, UCLA, Utah, #25 Washington
 
MIKE FANELLI TRACK CLASSIC
DATE: April 1
HOST: San Francisco State
LOCATION: Cox Stadium
LIVE RESULTS: https://bit.ly/3uMv7nh
LIVE STREAM ($): https://bit.ly/3NyJkfR
 
STANFORD INVITATIONAL
DATE: April 1-2
HOST: Stanford
LOCATION: Cobb Track and Angell Field
MEET SCHEDULE: https://stanford.io/3tPBUxa
LIVE RESULTS: https://bit.ly/3iOF0eE
LIVE STREAM ($): https://bit.ly/3NCfMOv
PARTICIPANTS: Academy of Arts, Air Force, Arizona State, #10 Arkansas, Boise State, BYU, #20 California, Cal Poly, Cal Poly Pomona, Cal State Fullerton, Colorado, Colorado Mines, Colorado State, CSU Monterey Bay, Gonzaga, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Liberty, Loras College, Miami (OH), Michigan, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Northern Arizona, Notre Dame, Oklahoma State, Portland, Rutgers, Sacramento State, Saint Louis, Saint Mary's, San Diego State, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Simon Fraser, Southern Utah, Stanford, Syracuse, Tulsa, UCLA, UCCS (Colorado Springs), UC Davis, #9 USC, Utah, Utah State, Washington State, Western Oregon, Wisconsin
 
SPEED TEST
Heading into this week's competition, Simone Plourde and Cara Woolnough still hold times that rank in the top-25 of their respective events. Plourde's mark of 2:05.53 in the 800m still ranks fifth fastest in the country while Woolnough's time of 4:21.29 in the 1500m race checks in at No. 22. Both times for Utah were set at the Trojan Invitational two weeks prior.
 
OFF THE BLOCKS
Kicking off the busy weekend for Utah will be the 10 competing at the UVU Collegiate Invitational on Thursday, March 31, at Hal Wing Track & Field. Of the 10 competing for the Utes down in Orem, seven will be making their outdoor season debut. Ellie Lundgreen will be competing in her first race since the MPSF Indoor Track & Field Championships in 2020 when she steps foot on the track in the 1500m.
 
Over in California, the sprints and hurdles crew competes at the West Coast Relays on Friday, April 1, inside Veteran's Memorial Coliseum. Of the 12 competing for Utah, Skyler Blair, Josefine Eriksen, Oneillia Fuller, Maya LeBar and Lauren O'Banion will be making their outdoor season debut.
 
Meanwhile, the distance crew will be competing at the Stanford Invitational Friday-Saturday. Of the 10 competing on The Farm, Hannah Butler, Emma Earl, Morgan Jensen, Sophie Ryan and Emily Venters will make their outdoor debut. Venters will be competing in her first outdoor event since 2019.
 
Additionally, Karli Branch and Emma Earl will also be making a stop at the Mike Fanelli Track Classic hosted at Cox Stadium on the campus of San Francisco State to compete in the 1500m race on Friday, April 1, before finishing the weekend out at the Stanford Invitational.
 
OUTDOOR SZN OPENER
The Utes had a great start to the outdoor season two weeks ago at the Trojan Invitational with several PRs to go with a trio of all-time marks on the track.
 
Cara Woolnough opened things up by winning the 1500m race with a PR time of 4:21.29 and moved into fifth all-time at Utah. Keelah Barger also posted a new PR in the same race, recording a time of 4:25.38 to crack the top-10 at Utah. Meanwhile, Brooke Manson (4:32.45) and Maddie Reed (5:01.36) also ran personal best times in the 1500m.
 
In the hurdles, Bailey Kealamakia was able to run a new PR in the 100m hurdles with a time of 14.89 (+3.2) while Rachel Whipple ran a personal best 400m hurdle (1:01.94).
 
Makenna McCloy narrowly bested her previous PR time in the 100m dash with a mark of 12.69 (+1.4) before Simone Plourde, Jasie York, Sophie Ryan and Emma Earl all set new PRs in the 800m race. Plourde ran the third-fastest time in school history with a PR time of 2:05.53 to take second overall.
 
UP NEXT
The Women of Utah return home after a busy weekend to host its annual Utah Spring Classic on Saturday, April 9. Prior to hosting its lone home meet, the Utes will be competing at the Weber State Open on Friday, April 8, before Utah hosts the second-half of the events at the McCarthey Family Track and Field Complex.
 
For the latest news and information on the Utah cross country and track & field programs, fans can stay connected online at www.UtahUtes.com and on social media by following on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
 
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